Why Teaching Life Skills Is Actually Good For Your Home
"Train up a child in the way he should go:
and when he is old, he will not depart from it."
~Proverbs 22:6 (KJV)
As homeschool moms, we are preparing their children for life. In teaching life skills, we hope to equip our young men and women for: their futures, their spiritual well being, their households, their job environments, their civic responsibilities, and in their relationships with others. That being said, it's important to build good habits in our children at all ages. It is with this in mind that we give them age-appropriate responsibilities to develop into mature, service-oriented adults. We also can't ignore the fact that teaching life skills has the added benefit of having a cleaner house. And who doesn't love that?!
To help you in delegating responsibilities to your children, I've written down a list of skills by age; a list of chores or "chore chart" if you will.
And, while this is simply a guideline, all responsibilities should suit each child’s level of ability and safety at all ages is essential.
HSMoms Chore Chart
Ages 2-3
Most children around the age of 3 love to help around the house. This is a great time to get started including them. Assign them easy tasks where they can experience a high degree of success and be sure to give them plenty of praise and encouragement while showing them how to do their tasks properly. Explain the job clearly and be on-hand to help them as you train them.
-pick up toys
-wipe up spills
-set table
-clear plates
-dust
Ages 4-6
Children at this age are branching out into new responsibilities. Encourage a positive attitude and make it fun for your children. At my house, we play a laundry sorting game that involves me calling out a type of clothing (sock, shirt) or a family member (mom, dad), the clothing that is specified is then throw at that pile while my children race to catch the item, making sure it lands in place. To avoid injury, my daughter receives the clothes to my left while my son catches the clothes thrown on my right. It's fun for all and helps pass the time in a silly way.
-make bed
-caring for animals; feeding, brushing, petting animals
-sort & fold laundry (w/ supervision)
-pull weeds & water plants (supervision needed to not pull flowers)
-toilets
-make bed
-carry groceries
-put unclean clothes in laundry
-cook together w/ mommy
-pack for trips
-sweep floors
-wash dishes (with supervision)
-clean bathroom sinks (with supervision)
-empty trash
-unload groceries
-clean toilets
-organize toys
Ages 7-9
Your kids are growing up and now able to handle some tasks independently. They've learned from you from: the example you've shown, the clarification you've provided and the encouragement you've given and now it's their chance to spread their wings. Yes, they will still need you to check on their progress...you are, after all, their mom. :)
-put groceries away
-load & unload the dishwasher
-vacuum
-operate the washer & dryer
-wash and clean out the car
-take trash to the curb
-do simple yard work
Ages 10-14
Before moving into the pre-teen & teen years, we've shown our children what to do and allowed them to help. From this point on, we're helping them, monitoring their progress and inspecting their work.
-mop floors
-prepare simple meals
-shovel snow
-vacuum
-clean fridge
-clean tub & shower
-organize pantry foods
-wash, walk & clean up after the dog
-use weed eater & blower
-wipe down baseboards & walls
Ages 15+
-do their laundry
-cook and clean up after meals
-mow the lawn
-basic car maintenance (checking for oil; air in the tires)
-keep room tidy
-budget money
